Hi, guys and girls. I am new to this forum and would like some of your expert advice. firstly let me explain the situation to you, so you can get a better understanding. 1 1/2 years ago i met my boyfriend, who is now my ex. during this relationship he told me he needed a garage to keep his motorbikes in and he would pay for it himself since we don't live together. I applied for the garage and got it under my name, and he was giving me the money for it. Now he have split up, he is being rather difficult. He owes over £100 for this garage, which is obviously in arrears, i have tried contacting him over facebook, but got no reply. The thing is, i phoned my landlords (the council ) and they said that if i didn't pay the £100 arrears plus whatever rent on the garage to keep me up to date i could lose my home, and my ex knows this but is ignoring my messages. I have a credit card and i am highly tempted to pay the outstanding money on that, but that was for emergencies only.. if i told the council to cancel the garage they would come and clear it out, but the thing is i don't have the keys for the garage, my ex does. so that will also mean i would have to pay for the locksmith and whatever else, damages etc. i am unemployed and i cannot afford all this debt to keep creeping up on me like this.. I don't know what to do, or where to turn. i am supposed to be paying the arrears off today ( 8th nov )

1. Cancel the garage, use the credit card to pay the arrears so that your credit stays good and you don't get evicted from your apt. And tha gets any future garage rent bills stopped.

2. Apply for the UK unemployment pay.

3. Continue searching for a job.

4. And don't beat yourself up over this - almost all of us, when we were young, were stiffed by a roommate, a bf or gf who over-promised and turned out to be of bad character. It's simply a hard learning experience that we all endure once (but not twice).

Fri Nov 08, 2013 6:52 pm

coasterSenior Advisor

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Not sure how these things work in the UK, but if this situation came up here, you could sue the bf in small claims court. He probably won't show, so you get a judgment against him for the amount owed, plus cost of collecting. Then you can get a lien on the contents in the garage, have the locks changed (cost of which is covered in the judgment), send him a copy of the judgment and the lien via certified mail, and a notice stating the contents will be sold to satisfy the debt owed plus costs, if not paid within 30 days. If the bikes are still in the garage, this will most certainly get his attention. If you don't know where he is to send him the judgment, then the changed locks will most certainly give him the picture. And if he breaks in to remove his bikes, then you can have him arrested.

The whole point of the above scenario is that there are certain ways to do accomplish certain things; they must be done according to the law, and you want to have the law working for you on your side. Trying to contact via facebook is most certainly not the way to do it. And you found that accomplished nothing. You'll have to front the expenses; but that's what credit cards are for. This *IS* a genuine emergency, isn't it?

You might even be able to get your landlord working on your side: your landlord might give you extra time if they know you're going about this the right way so that they know they'll be getting their money when it's all worked out. In fact, they might even be a good source for advising you on the best way to go about this according to the laws and the legal system where you live. If you can get the landlord on your side, as your helper in this situation, that's the most sure way that they'll get what's owed them; if you get what's owed YOU. Then you're not caught in the middle between two adversaries. Then you've only got one adversary .... the deadbeat bf.